Born the daughter of a high-ranking civil servant in Mysore in 1933 — 14 years before the Partition and Independence of India — Jain showed early promise as an academic in the male-dominated field of economics. Following a degree in Mathematics and Economics from Mysore University in 1953, she completed a Masters degree in Economics at Oxford University in 1962, and went on to teach Economics at Delhi University for several years.
While editing and publishing her book Women in India (1975), Jain began to apply feminist theory and principles to her research into issues of poverty, economic development, South-to-South economic cooperation, and the rights of women.
Source: rabble.ca
Photo: adria.richards (flickr)